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5 Things To Seek

Accommodation

Ebb & Flow Rest Camp (South)

All accommodation is serviced daily and provided with bedding, towels and soap.

4-bed family cottages, each with two bedrooms, one bathroom (bath), open plan, partially equipped kitchen. Please indicate whether you would prefer a double bed and 2 single beds or single beds only, subject to availability.

4-bed log cottages on wooden stilts, each with two bedrooms, one bathroom (bath & shower), open plan, partially equipped kitchen. Please indicate whether you would prefer a double bed and 2 single beds or single beds only, subject to availability.

Forest Cabins – 4 beds and 2 beds – ablutions and partially equipped kitchens. A communal kitchen for cooking. Microwaves are available in all units.

Ebb & Flow Rest Camp (North)

2-bed Rondavel, each with bathroom (shower) and basic kitchen equipment.

Natural and Cultural History

Wilderness

“...the beauty and serenity of this corner of the world is in such conflict with its unsuitable name …” “in the Wilderness build me a nest and remain there forever at rest …” (a line from Hayden’s Creation ) was sung by a lady Theresa, to her fiancée, to escape the memory of being orphaned when her parents farm was destroyed in the frontier war.

Shelters

The Ebb and Flow shelter in the northern rest camp was excavated for guano in the 1800’s. The cave was used as a shelter and living place of Khoi and San. Two skeletons were discovered and various implements. One of the implements was described as a core scraper.

Oakhurst shelter – Stone Age People

This is one of the oldest caves excavated in the country. Forty skeletons of Khoisan (adults and infants) buried in different layers and depths were found.

Other implements found: pottery shards, hippo bones, buffalo, duiker and steenbok bones yielded information about their cultural development and diet

Historical sites

St. Aidan’s church is one of the oldest buildings in Wilderness, which was named after an Irish saint, who was part of the missionary drive to Scotland and England. The church bell was salvaged from the SS Thorne, which was wrecked in a fog off Robben Island on 18th May 1831 and presented to St. Aidan’s by the Piggott family in 1951.

The Oakhurst church was consecrated on All Saints Day in 1876 and called All Saints.

1952 Settler's Monument was erected by the Lakes Committee in Wilderness to commemorate the founding of the European settlement in South Africa on 6 April 1652.

Gericke’s Point was named by Bartholomew Diaz as “Ponta de Pescaria” meaning "place or point of fish". Today this is still a famous fishing spot as well as rocky-shore and snorkelling site.

The scenic “passes road” was completed in 1893 by Thomas Bain. This was the first substantial link between George and Knysna.

The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe runs 67 kilometres between Knysna and George thus passing through the Wilderness Area of the Garden Route National Park. It is one of the remaining scheduled steam trains and reputably the second most beautiful line in the world.

Gate Registration & Indemnity Form

Natural and Cultural History

Wilderness

“...the beauty and serenity of this corner of the world is in such conflict with its unsuitable name …” “in the Wilderness build me a nest and remain there forever at rest …” (a line from Hayden’s Creation ) was sung by a lady Theresa, to her fiancée, to escape the memory of being orphaned when her parents farm was destroyed in the frontier war.

Shelters

The Ebb and Flow shelter in the northern rest camp was excavated for guano in the 1800’s. The cave was used as a shelter and living place of Khoi and San. Two skeletons were discovered and various implements. One of the implements was described as a core scraper.

Oakhurst shelter – Stone Age People

This is one of the oldest caves excavated in the country. Forty skeletons of Khoisan (adults and infants) buried in different layers and depths were found.

Other implements found: pottery shards, hippo bones, buffalo, duiker and steenbok bones yielded information about their cultural development and diet

Historical sites

St. Aidan’s church is one of the oldest buildings in Wilderness, which was named after an Irish saint, who was part of the missionary drive to Scotland and England. The church bell was salvaged from the SS Thorne, which was wrecked in a fog off Robben Island on 18th May 1831 and presented to St. Aidan’s by the Piggott family in 1951.

The Oakhurst church was consecrated on All Saints Day in 1876 and called All Saints.

1952 Settler's Monument was erected by the Lakes Committee in Wilderness to commemorate the founding of the European settlement in South Africa on 6 April 1652.

Gericke’s Point was named by Bartholomew Diaz as “Ponta de Pescaria” meaning "place or point of fish". Today this is still a famous fishing spot as well as rocky-shore and snorkelling site.

The scenic “passes road” was completed in 1893 by Thomas Bain. This was the first substantial link between George and Knysna.

The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe runs 67 kilometres between Knysna and George thus passing through the Wilderness Area of the Garden Route National Park. It is one of the remaining scheduled steam trains and reputably the second most beautiful line in the world.

Vital Information

Climate

Nature has blessed Wilderness with a pleasant, temperate climate; it is unique in Africa as the only area in which rainfall occurs throughout the year. And, to cap it all, most of our rain falls at night! It's the ideal climate for a visit - at any time of the year!

Day Visitors

The park is ideal for day visitors with various picnic sites at the rest camp and at the lagoon.

Fuel Stations: Petrol/ Diesel

Vehicle fuel is available in all parks (or is available on the park periphery):

South African legislation stipulates that fuel stations will accept legitimate petrol/fuel/garage/credit/debit cards or cash as a form of payment for any fuel purchase.

Firearms

No firearms allowed.

Official Hours

Reception office closes at 17h30

Check-in - 14:00

Check-out - 10:00

Internal Road Network

The access road from the N2 is paved, however, the access from the northern camp is gravelled.

Contact Information

People with disabilities

Wheelchair Access

Ebb and Flow Restcamp (South) has one accessible chalet and one accessible forest hut. Most of the boardwalk along the Touw River can be accessed, although the access ramps are a bit perilous in parts. This allows a person to witness the tidal nature of the river at close quarters. A bird hide at Rondevlei can be accessed with difficulty (the pathway is a combination of sandy soil and thick grass).